Integral crank-hanger and rear fork for bicycles



No. 6|9,550. Patented Feb. l4, I899. W. H. FAUBER.

INTEGRAL CRANK HANGER AND REAR FORK FOR BIGYGLES.

' filed Ju1y2 8, 1897.)

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No. 6|9,550; Patented Feb. 14, I899. W. H. FAUBER.

INTEGRAL CRANK HANGER AND REAR FORK FOB BICYCLES.

(Application filed July 28, 1897.)

(No Model.)

2 Shets-Sheei 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM H. FAUBER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

INTEGRAL CRANK-HANGER'AND REAR FORK FOR BICYCLES SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 619,550, dated. February 14,1899.

Application filed July 26, 1897- To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM H. FAUBER, of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Integral Crank-Hangers and Rear Forks for Bicycles; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in crank-hangers for bicycles of that kind which are constructed of drawn metal, and it refers more especially to tubular hangers having an integral rear fork which is joined to the hanger by a tubular connecting part or shank and having also integral tubular projections or thimbles by which the ends of the other frame members are attached to the hanger.

The invention consists in the matters hereinafter described, and pointed out in the appended claims.

A hanger embodying my invention consists generally of two tubular parts or sections, each having at its inner end, where it is joined to the other tubular part or section, an integral half-tubular half-shank terminating at its outer end in two fork-arms, the said forked half-tubular half-shank when joined to the other similarly forked half tubular halfshank of the other section forming a tubular shank which is forked or provided with forkarms at its rear end. The shank formed by the two half-tubes is given aquarter-twist in the process of manufacture, so as to bring the fork-arms into the proper relation to the hanger.

The invention may be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a View in side elevation of a drawn-metal crank-hanger and a rear fork embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan View thereof. Fig. 3 is a side view of the same, illustrating it during the process of manufacture and with the forks extending in a plane at right angles to the axis of the hanger. Fig. 4 is a plan View of the hanger when in the condition shown in Fig. 3. Fig.

5 is a sectional view taken on line 5 5 of Fig.

Serial No. 646,024. (No model.)

3. Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on line .of a main tubular member A, through which the crank-axle passes and within the ends of which the outer members of the ball-bearings are inserted. Said tubular partA is provided with a rearwardly-extendin g integral tubular shank A, which forms the forward portion of the rear-fork member of the frame, and is also provided with two radial integral tubular thimbles A A which are arranged with their central axes in the same vertical plane with that of the tube A and are adapted for attachment of two members of a bicycle-framenamely, the lower front frame-bar and the seat-post frame member. Said shank A is forked at its rear end to form two tubular prongs or fork-arms A A, which are joined integrally to the shank A and are adapted at their ends for the attachment-of the side pieces or side members of the rear fork.

The thimbles A and A as well as the forkarms A may be arranged for attachment of tubular frame members either by brazing or by electric welding. If for brazingfsaid parts will be reduced in diameter for insertion within the ends of the frame-tubes that are attached thereto; but if constructed for the attachment of frame-tubes by electric welding they will bemade of the same diameter as the tubes to be attached thereto, so that tubes of the same size may be secured thereto by butt-welded joints. In Figs. 1 to f the drawings thesaid parts are constructed for the making of brazed joints and for this purpose are reduced in diameter at' their outer ends and provided with annular shoulders at a a against which the ends of the tubes abut when placed over the said parts in the operation of brazing. Said parts which receive. the frame-tubes are, moreover, provided with closed outer ends, the same having end walls A A A which are made integral with the sides of the thimbles and are formed in the process of drawing or swaging to the connection between the parts.

the metal. The making of said thimbles and fork-arms with such integral end walls has the important advantage of making the same very much stifier and stronger than would be the case were the parts made in the form of open-ended tubes, it being obvious that the outer ends of the thimbles and fork-arms thus constructed cannot well be bent without being partially collapsed or crushed in and that the integral end walls by preventing such collapsing or crushing greatly strengthens the parts.

The hanger A and the shank A consist of two similar halves or sections the meeting edges of which are joined in a vertical plane passing centrally through the hanger itself and the thimbles A A and in a horizontal plane passing through the fork-arms A A the line of juncture in the shank A being of curved or spiral form, as indicated at a in the drawings. In Figs. 7 and 8 is illustrated one of the halves or sections as it appears before the two sections are joined to form the hanger, and in Figs. 3 and 4: is shown the hanger as it appears after the sections are joined, but before the shank A is twisted to bring the fork-arms into proper relation to 1 shown in Figs. 1 to 8, said end walls will be the tube A.

Each section of the hanger is made from sheet metal, preferably sheet-steel, by drawing and swaging operations of a character familiar to those acquainted with the art, the tubular body portion of each section being formed by the use of drawing-dies, while the integral half-tube, half fork-arms, and halfthimbles will be formed by the action of swaging-dies. Commonly the drawing and swaging dies will be connected with each other and act together in the manner common in making other articles from sheet metal in cases where a combined drawing and swaging action is required in order to bring the metal to the desired shape. In drawing and swaging each section the half fork-arms will be arranged in the same plane with the halfthimbles, thereby enabling said fork-arms to be made in the same operation with that of forming the half-tubularhalf-shank A. The twisting of the shank A required for bringing the fork-arms into proper position with respect to the hanger may be accomplished either before or after the parts are joined.

The two sections constituting the hanger, the rear-fork tube, and the fork-arms are socured together with their edges abutting against each other, so as to give a smooth finish to the joints along the sides of the parts. The two sections may thus be joined in any suitable manneras, for instance, by the processes of electric welding or by brazing. When the process of brazing is used, the usual provision of holding-pins, dowels,or the like may be used to give additional strength The strength of the joint made by brazing is, however, suiiicient for the ordinary purpose, for the reason that the parts are connected not only by being brazed to each other, but when placed in the machine-frame by the ends of the tubular frame, which embrace or extend around the ends of the fork-arms and thimbles and which are united by brazing to these parts. If the parts be joined by electric welding, the twisting of the shank A presents no difliculty, although usually said shank will be confined within a cylindric die at the time power is applied to the fork-arms and not to the hanger for twisting the shank. The said shank may be twisted before the parts are joined by inserting a cylindric mandrel within the shank A and at the same time confining the shank within cylindric dies, the mandrel and dies in such case holding the metal accurately in cylindric form and the two parts or sections accurately in relation to each other while the twisting is being accomplished. If the twisting be accomplished after the brazing process, the shank A may be confined and held in shape between opposing half-cylindric dies in the same manner as in the case of an electrically-welded shank.

When the outer ends of the thimbles and fork-arms are provided with end walls, as

formed in the swaging operation, half on each thimble, by the employment of suitab1yshaped dies without adding materially to the expense or trouble of such swaging operation. While the making of the parts with said end walls is preferred, and it is highly desirable in cases where the frame members are to be joined to the parts by brazing, yet so far as the more general features of my invention are concerned the thimbles and fork-arms may be made without such end walls. If made without end walls and intended for the joining of the frame-tubes to the hanger by brazing, they may be made of considerable length, it being obvious that they may be made of any length desired by the use of properly-shaped swaging-dies. Moreover, if the parts are constructed for the use of electric welding in joining the frame-tubes thereto the end walls are unnecessary, as the frametubes may be welded by butt welds to the said thimbles and fork-arms in an obvious manner. The construction of the fork-arms when made for electric welding is illustrated in Fig. 9.

The making of an integral sheet-metal hanger, shank, and rear-fork tube in two sections, as described, has the important advantages of greatly simplifying the operation of making the hanger and of enabling the forkarms to be made without any considerable additional expense. The features of construction described have also the general advantage of affording a combined hanger and rear-fork tube of great strength, which is produced with few operations and therefore at a moderate cost.

I claim as my invention-- 1. A combined hanger and rear fork made IIO of drawn metal and consisting of two tubular parts or sections, each having at its inner end an integral half-tubular half-shank terminating in half-tubular half fork-arms, said parts or sections being permanently joined edge to edge.

2. A combined hanger and rear fork made of drawn sheet metal, ,and consisting of two tubular parts or sections, each having at its inner end one or more integral half-thimbles and half-tubular halfshanks terminating in half-tubular half fork-arms, such parts or sections being permanently joined together edge to edge.

3. A combined hanger and rear fork made of drawn sheet metal and consisting of two tubular parts'or sections, each having at its inner end a half-tubular half-shank terminating in half-tubular half fork-arms, such parts or sections being permanently joined together edge to edge the fork-arms being closed at their outer ends by integral end walls or heads.

4. A combined hanger and rear fork made of sheet metal and consisting of two tubular parts or sections each having at its inner end a half-tube forming a half-shank terminating in half-tubular half fork-arms, such parts or sections being permanently joined together edge to edge the fork-arms joined in a plane parallel to the central axis of the hanger, the joint of the halves of the shank conforming to a spiral.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses, this 24th day of July, A. D. 1897.

WILLIAM H. FAUBER,

Witnesses:

O. CLARENCE PooLE, WILLIAM A. HALL. 

